General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Neil deGrasse Tyson on the popularity of dictatorships [View all]wnylib
(21,450 posts)seen the films.
There is, as you say, a tendency for some people to seek control and power solely for themselves. There is also a tendency for humans to seek and accept leadership in societies. We need some method of organizing ourselves. What kind of leadership we the people accept is up to us.
It is human nature for someone to cling to power and to abuse it. They are stopped only by opposition or a set of values that people commit to. The "values" can be the self-serving interests of an opposing war Lord, or they can be, as the Last Kingdom series shows, a commitment to a set of values for all to adhere to (King Alfred) that balances the power of rulers and ruled.
Monarchies were, for a time, an improvement over the chaos of warlords. But the power of monarchs was gradually checked by advisors and lords who served under the monarchs. As Medieval European societies became more complex in trade and technologies, more advisors and checks on monarchies evolved.
There was always a concept of good rulers who felt responsible for the well being of the society and its members, and a concept of bad rulers who were too absolute and self serving in their power. You can see it in the descriptions that go with their titles. Alfred the Great. Ivan the Terrible. Bloody Queen Mary. Good Queen Bess.